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Sound idea; Sharp success

29 January 2000

By Bob Johnstone

Licensing computer chip design to Japan seems a bit like carrying coals to
Newcastle. But a small company from Sydney has done just that with an innovation
to make the sound in headphones more realistic. The technology is already being
used by one of the world’s major airlines.

Japanese consumer electronics companies are always on the lookout for
anything that might give them an edge over their rivals in a fiercely
competitive market. So perhaps it’s not surprising that Sharp, the electronics
giant based in Osaka, should sign a deal late last November with tiny Lake
Technology …